January 4Spot

January 2023

District 4 Officers

Questions? Comments? Concerns?

Contact your District 4 board members.

PRESIDENT

Jeanne Gehret

jeannegehret@comcast.net

VICE PRESIDENT

Betsy Cutler

betsy2955@gmail.com

SECRETARY

Bill Bauer

william.baueriii@verizon.net

TREASURER

Pat Civale

pat@csa-accounting.com

DISTRICT DIRECTOR

Joann Glasson

joannglasson@msn.com

President's Message

Happy New Year, and welcome to 2023!

2023 District 4 Goodwill and Charity Committee Appointments

Each year Districts nominate members deserving of lifetime appointments to two honorary committees – the Goodwill Committee and the Charity Committee. For the first time, the role of making appointments has fallen to the District Presidents. It is therefore my great pleasure to announce the following deserving individuals who have made exceptional contributions to bridge and the bridge community. It is our good fortune to count them among our friends in District 4. Congratulations, one and all!

Goodwill Committee Appointments:

Marc Cohen: Recognized for both his local bridge club leadership and for accepting Tournament Co-Chair responsibilities for the Philadelphia Regional at Valley Forge and the 2025 Philadelphia Summer NABC. Read more HERE about Mark and his contributions to bridge.

Lisa Mita: Recognized for her determination and dedication to teaching, promoting the game of bridge, and challenging players to “play up”. Read more HERE about all the ways Lisa has contributed to and promoted bridge.

Sue Manning: Recognized for her many contributions as an integral volunteer member of multiple bridge technology teams: EDGAR (online cheating detection program), Shark Bridge, and The Common Game. Read more HERE about how Sue is playing a seriously important role to advance bridge technology in support of modernizing our game.

Todd Thorsen: Recognized for using his skills and enthusiasm for technology to create a new website for District 4. Read more HERE about how Todd played a major role in modernizing the D4 Website.

Charity Committee Appointments:

Bill Herdle: Recognized for his willingness to take on new responsibilities and deliver D4 tournament information to the email boxes of District 4 members. Read more HERE about what Bill is doing in support of his Unit and District 4.

Ann Smallen: Recognized for her helpfulness in assisting a District 6 (VA) club move to online games. Read more HERE about the many ways Ann delivers results for the bridge community.

2023 District 4 Regionals

The schedule of District 4 Regional Tournaments in 2023 is provided below:

· May 1-5: Rehoboth Beach Regional, Rehoboth Beach, DE

· June 26-July 2: Philadelphia Regional at King of Prussia, PA

· August 7-11: Finger Lakes Regional, Rochester, NY

· Oct 30-Nov 5: Lancaster Regional, Lancaster County, PA

Grand National Teams (GNT) District 4 Finals Will Be Here Soon!

The 2023 GNT District 4 Finals will be played online in February and March. If you haven’t participated in GNT’s before, you might be wondering what it’s all about. Put very simply, The GNTs are a grassroots team game where ACBL members at various Masterpoint levels compete against other players within their level. District competition winners can then go on to represent District 4 in pursuit of a National title at the Summer Nationals (NABC in Chicago, IL – July 2023).

It’s fun, it’s exciting… Gold points are awarded… and it’s a great reason to gather your bridge besties into a team and get registered using THIS LINK. (Pre-registration is REQUIRED)

Want to play in more than one Flight? Then this will come as good news - any team can “play up”: meaning, not only can teams register for the Flight indicated by their Masterpoint holdings, but they can also compete in any higher Masterpoint Flight.

Dates each Flight will compete are as follows:

· Open (Unlimited MPs)............................... March 25-26

· Flight A (Under 6000 MPs*)......................... March 4-5

· Flight B (Under 2500 MPs*)......................... February 4-5

· Flight C (Non-Life Master & Under 500 MPs*)... March 25-26

*Masterpoints for Flight qualification are “as of” August 7, 2022

Additional information will be published via email to the District 4 mailing list subscribers (subscribe here), and also on the District 4 website (www.4acbl.org).

Until next month,

I welcome your comments or suggestions (jeannegehret@comcast.net)

From the District Director

Happy New Year!! I hope 2023 brings you lots of fun and masterpoints at the bridge table.

Phoenix was a terrific site for an NABC. The playing areas were well-lit and spread out. The weather was perfect and the downtown area had terrific restaurant choices. Many players took a day off to visit Sedona and the Grand Canyon.

Attendance was a little disappointing at 6,678 tables. The pre-tournament estimate was 7,000 tables.

Highlights of the Phoenix Board Meetings

No one else wanted the job, so Joann Glasson was elected President again.

The board increased the allocation of non-life master regionals to each district from three per year to five per year. This is an effort to get more new players engaged in tournament bridge.

The board split the competition for the Helen Shanbrom Ace of Clubs award. Starting in 2023, there will be two Ace of Club races. One for points won online and one for points won in face-to-face bridge clubs.

A motion was passed that will allow units to use tournament assistants or club directors who have been certified for local sectional staffing at sectionals that estimate they will have fewer than 25 tables per session and Non-Life Master tournaments for players with fewer than 750 masterpoints.

Each District can run NABC fundraising games in each of the three years prior to an NABC held in their district. These fundraising games can now also be held in VACB games.

Districts can hold two Royal STAC events in 2023 and clubs will once again receive extra club championship games.

Virtual clubs will be permitted to hold fund games online in designated months to raise funds for Juniors, International Bridge, Grass Roots, the Charity Foundation and the Educational Foundation.

I appointed former District 4 players Brian Platnick and Franco Baseggio to receive the Volunteer of the Year Award in 2023. Brian and Franco are responsible for developing EDGAR, the new cheating detection tool that will quickly clean up the online game.

The board rejected the 2023 budget submitted by management which predicted a loss of $1M in 2023. Review of revenue sources and expense cuts will be made to bring us closer to a balanced budget.

Joe Jones, the Executive Director, resigned effective 12/31/2022. I appointed a Search Committee to look for a replacement. Paul Cuneo, Region 9 Director, has volunteered to serve as interim executive director until the position can be filled.

A complete summary of the board meetings can be accessed here.

DISTRICT 4 PLAYERS WHO FINISHED IN THE OVERALLS IN NABC EVENTS IN PHOENIX

Mitchell Open BAM: 3 – David Hoffner

Mixed Swiss Teams: 16 – Connie Goldberg

TOP 10 FINISHES IN REGIONAL EVENTS AT THE PHOENIX NABC

Sunday Top-Flight Swiss Teams: 2 – Jim McKeown, Tom Andrews

Tuesday Afternoon Side Game: 5B – Todd Thorsen, Bobette Thorsen

Tuesday Top-Flight Swiss Teams: 4/6 – Connie Goldberg

Wednesday Top-Flight Swiss Teams: 4 – Connie Goldberg

Wednesday Bracketed Round Robin Teams Bkt 3: 2/3 – Todd Thorsen, Bobette Thorsen

Thursday Bracketed Round Robin Teams Bkt. 3: 1 – Todd Thorsen, Bobette Thorsen

Friday Bracketed Round Robin Teams Bkt. 2: 2 – Jim McKeown, Tom Andrews

Saturday Top-Flight Swiss Teams: 6/7 – Richard Popper

Sunday Morning Side Game: 1 – Robert Maier

Sunday Afternoon Side Game: 1 – Robert Maier

Friday/Sunday Daylight Side Series: 1 – Robert Maier

Sunday Bracketed Round Robin Teams Bkt. 1: 2 – Todd Thorsen, Bobette Thorsen

District 4 Schedule

Sectionals

Philadelphia, PA

January 6-8

Wilmington, DE

February 24-26

STaCs

D4; U135 (D6)

February 13-19

GNT

· Open (Unlimited MPs)............................... March 25-26

· Flight A (Under 6000 MPs*)......................... March 4-5

· Flight B (Under 2500 MPs*)......................... February 4-5

· Flight C (Non-Life Master & Under 500 MPs*)... March 25-26

For a full year D4 calendar, click here.

For the D4 virtual club calendar, click here

For a 2023 event schedule, click here

Our Monthly Feature

The 4Spot features fantastic contributors, on a regular rotation:

Larry's Learning Center by Larry Cohen:

January, April, July, October

For Novices Only by Marti Ronemus:

February, May, August, November

The ABC of Bridge by Dave Wachsman:

March, June, September, December

After publishing two fab Larry Cohen articles in a row last fall, we have decided to let the 2022 Master Solver's Club champ take a turn with a delightful article, originally published in the North Penn Bridge Bulletin. For your reading pleasure:

Doc Yanker, DDS, Pulls Out A Dentist’s Coup

by Bruce Schwaidelson

DENTIST’S COUP: The removal of a safe exit card from an opponent’s hand... Why dentist coup? [Declarer] extracts [an opponent’s] exit card(s) as if he were a dentist removing teeth. -- The Official Encyclopedia of Bridge, 7th Edition

Henry “Hammerin’ Hank” Yanker, DDS, is one of the least popular players at North Penn DBC. He is not obnoxious or rude or anything like that, it’s just that for quite a few players he is in fact their dentist. And it doesn’t help that his favorite partner is Perry O’Dontist, DMD, since many of Doc Yanker’s patients have been referred to Perry.

Yanker began playing bridge when he was young and impressionable, having no idea what he wanted to be when he grew up. Then in 1986 two things occurred almost simultaneously: he read in a bridge book that there was a fancy declarer play called the “Dentist’s Coup” and later that day he saw the movie “Little Shop of Horrors.” When he watched Steve Martin, a.k.a. Orin Scrivello, DDS, perform as the most outrageous dentist imaginable, Yanker was hooked! (If you have never seen Martin sing “Be A Dentist,” or even if you have, do watch it here.

Fortunately or unfortunately for our bridge club, Yanker and his wife Flossy moved to this area right after he graduated from Univ. of Fluorida Dental School ("Go Incisors!”), and he just loves to play in our Toothsday night game. He was pretty excited when he became declarer for this Deal of the Week against two of his favorite patients, Kay Vitty and Ruth Kanal:

The 2♣ bid by Kay (West) showed a two-suiter - clubs and a second suit – and Yanker eventually wound up declarer in 3♦, as did a number of others. West of course started the defense with a high club and when Ruth played the ♣Q, promising the ♣J too, Kay led a low club to her partner’s 10. Ruth switched to the ♠9, Yanker playing his Ace as Kay encouraged with her 7. You can follow the play by clicking here and hitting “NEXT” repeatedly.

Cashing two high trumps in Doc’s own hand revealed that his patient's diamonds were 2-2. Facing five possible losers (the two clubs, a spade and two hearts), several declarers decided that endplaying the two-suited overcaller by playing the ♠K and another spade was their best chance to

eliminate the second heart loser. That play would force the defense to start the heart suit or concede a ruff-and-sluff. The problem with their plan: it could not succeed if East held the ♥AJ10, since West’s heart shift would guarantee two heart tricks for the defense.

As it happened, most Wests returned the ♥J, giving declarer the chance to guess who held the ♥10. Since the 10 was most likely in the East hand (West was presumably short in hearts), the successful declarers played the King from dummy, and, when East took the Ace and continued a low heart, they hooked the 9 and claimed their contract. Those that guessed wrong by playing West for the ♥J10, soon found themselves down one. Tooth be told, after drawing trump there is a much better line to make the contract. Can you find it?

Doc’s interest in both dentistry and bridge had Crest-ed when he was an undergrad at Colgate. Not only did dental school become his ensuing Aim, but he had made it his life’s goal to one day pull off or, better yet, pull out a dentist’s coup. Would today be his day? Yanker had an Ultra Brite idea!

When the Doc metaphorically asked West to “open wide,” he could see that Kay had at least nine cards in the black suits along with two diamonds, leaving her room for no more than two hearts (plus a loose filling and a couple of impacted wisdoms). If her hand included the stiff ♥A or Ax, a heart towards the King would solve that problem. But what if East held the missing Ace – or worse yet - AJ10? Yanker found a 100% play to handle that possibility. When a heart to dummy’s King lost to the Ace and the ♠8 was returned, here was the position:

You should have seen the Gleem in Doc Yanker’s eyes as he won the ♠K. It was indeed time to get to the root of things by extracting his first Dentist’s Coup ever! The key play was next: Yanker immediately cashed the ♥Q, thereby yanking out West’s only safe exit card, and then played his spade loser. West of course had no choice but to win the spade trick and concede a ruff-and-sluff.

Ruffing in dummy and pitching his heart loser allowed Yanker to claim his contract. Hammerin’ Hank was finally able to extricate “Dentist’s Coup” from his bucket list. Even Perry O’Dontist was excited, exclaiming: “Well played, Partner! You truly deserve a plaque to commemorate this historic occasion!” And the boys went out to celebrate by enjoying their favorite linguini al dente while downing a couple of bottles of Listerine, just as they had in dental school.

By the way, if you haven’t seen the Doc around our club lately, it’s because he and wife Flossy are working on another bucket list item. They are presently driving their RV to the beautiful state of South Decayda to finally see Mount Brushmore.

Master Solvers Club

Moderator: Nick Straguzzi

Nick kicks off the new year with another head-scratcher. Read how this year's new panel chose to handle the problem here.

Then visit the MSC website to read next month's problem and submit your answers online here.

Local Boys Make Good

During the Fall NABC in Phoenix, AZ, Rui Marques and Rob Maier, both based in District 4, received promotions and additional responsibilities in recognition of their directing and leadership skills.

We are very fortunate beneficiaries of these two talented gentlemen, and the many ways they support our STaCs, GNT and NAP District Finals, and Sectional and Regional tournaments. You often see them at tournaments and special games, but were you aware they also work hand-in-hand with organizers before, during, and after to provide planning support and after event reporting?

Congratulations Rob and Rui – we’re so very proud!

News from Around the Units

Unit 112: Central New York

www.acblunit112.org

Betty Youmans

readsausten@yahoo.com

Mark your calendars for August 7-11, 2023 to attend the Finger Lakes Regional tournament in Rochester. This is the first District 4 Regional held within Unit 112 since 2019. Players with twenty or fewer Masterpoints get their first entry free!

Congratulations to our Advancing Players:

Adv NABC Masters

Nicholas Nelson, Victor NY
Tara Holter, Victor NY

NABC Master

William Le Beau, Jamesville NY

Regional Master

Victoria Krzywda, Elmira NY

Sectional Masters

James Hassell, Elmira NY
Clifford Donn, Morrisville NY

Club Masters

Edie Nupuf, Oswego NY

Junior Masters

Pauline Sullivan, Elmira NY
Graham Meyer, Syracuse NY

Kudos to Tom Andrews of Utica who earned 60.81 Masterpoints at the Phoenix NABC.

Link to the unit website

Unit 120: Northeastern Pennsylvania

www.unit120.org

Doreese Torrey

doreeset@gmail.com

Hello Unit 120!! Well, here we are in 2023! Hope you all made a resolution to play more bridge either or both online and/or face to face. That's a resolution we can all agree will be fun and rewarding.

December recognition is as follows:

New Sapphire Life Master Stephen J Tillman Shavertown, PA

New Junior Life Master Alana Dewey Troy, PA

Please put your hands together and give a rousing applause for outstanding performance by both.

Beth Rosenthal hosted the annual Holiday Party which was held December 18, 2022 at the Appletree Terrace, Dallas PA. George Mansour directed the game. Thank you both for such a lovely time. It was wonderful to see many of our friends and players. The food was delicious and the game was Life Masters in Section A and non-Life Masters in Section B. Many of our Unit players are either playing online or simply not playing due to the Covid and flu concerns that have plagued our world these past few years. For those of you who were unable to attend and for those of us who were there, here are some candid shots of all the players.

Walter Mitchell held a brief board meeting to discuss the future games and tournaments of the Unit. The annual Unit 120 meeting date will be announced soon. Election of officers will also be taking place during the annual meeting. Please plan on attending when date and time is finalized.

Hope you enjoyed seeing everyone! Hope to see you at the virtual and face to face bridge tables.

Link to the unit website

Unit 121: Berks Montgomery

www.unit121bridge.com

Carl Ziegler

crzig@hometownu.com

We welcome new board members Marlene Winkleman and Beth Jasinski for 2023. And to retiring board member Jack Berry, thank you for your service to our Unit this past year.

Congratulations to Dorothy McCormick and Travis Crump who won the Myrtle Quier Game played on December 20 and to Maxine Hornberger and Norm Wenger who placed 2nd. Myrtle and Hawley Quier were prior owners of The Reading Eagle. Myrtle was a staunch supporter of Unit 121 and quite an accomplished bridge player. Most importantly, she was very gracious to all.

Happy Holidays!

Link to the unit website

Unit 133: Lehigh Valley

www.lvbabridge.org

Lois Fuini

lafuini@yahoo.com

Happy New Year!

We extend our best wishes for a healthy, and happy 2023!

In Memoriam Game

Thank you to the members who played on Sunday, December 11 to celebrate the lives and achievements of the 10 members of Unit 133 who passed away last year. An Open game of duplicate bridge was played in their honor. All proceeds benefit Lehigh Valley Active Life.

Winners - Open Pairs

N/S: Paul and Peg Irvine 2nd-Stan and Karen Yellin

E/W: Jim Kenny and Gus Nigro 2nd-Peter Stoyanov and Pat Clarke

Thank You!

The Board of Directors and members of Unit 133 would like to sincerely thank the following retiring board members for their generous gift of time, talent, and treasure. These volunteers have helped our unit grow and achieve many goals and successes needed to move our unit forward.

Retired Board Members: Chuck Campbell Mimi Lengel

ACBL Junior Fund Charity Game

Open, 0-750, and 0-200 Pairs

WHERE: Lehigh Valley Active Life Center

1633 W Elm Street Allentown PA

WHEN: Thursday, January 12, 2023 at 12:30pm

WHO: Open, 0-750, and 0-200 Pairs

If the 0-750 or 0-200 game has fewer than 3 tables, it will be combined.

WHY: The Junior Fund is an ACBL wide foundation that helps support youth bridge for those under the age of 26. Club players earn extra masterpoints, while helping the Junior Program for Youth offset the cost for these younger players to attend the World Youth Championships.

COST: $8 per person

REFRESHMENTS: Bagged snacks and water will be provided.

MORE INFORMATION: If you have additional questions or need help finding a partner, please contact Betsy Cutler at betsy2955@gmail.com

or Lois Fuini at lafuini@yahoo.com.

Vaccinations required, masks optional. There will be a board meeting preceding the game at 10:30.

“ Super Bowl” Sunday Charity Games Open, 0-750, and 0-200 Pairs

WHERE: Lehigh Valley Active Life Center

WHEN: February12, 2023 at 1 PM

WHO: Open, 0-750 and 0-200 Pairs

If the 0-200 or 0750 game has fewer than 3 tables, it will be combined.

WHY: Enjoy a game of bridge to benefit the Second Harvest Food Bank. Please bring a can of soup or any other non-perishable food item. In addition to the food items, all cash donations and proceeds from the games will benefit Second Harvest.

COST: $8 per person

REFRESHMENTS: Bagged snacks and bottled water will be provided. At this time no other food will be permitted in the facility. We will keep you updated.

Vaccinations are required and masks are optional. However, if you are asked to wear a mask by other players at the table, you must comply without comment.

Link to Unit Website

Unit 141: Philadelphia

www.philadelphiabridge.info

Jay Apfelbaum

japfel1@comcast.net

Our Next Sectional Tournament - January 6-8, 2023

The Philadelphia Contract Bridge Association will hold its next tournament at the Bala Golf Club. This is simply a beautiful site for a tournament. A ballroom with plenty of room. Free parking for everyone. This tournament will be cashless, although it will accept a check if absolutely necessary. Finally, we have a schedule of events that everyone can enjoy.

Friday, January 6 and Saturday, January 7

10:00 Single–Session Stratified Open Pairs

(A: 2,500+ B: 750–2,500 C: 0–750)

Single–Session Stratified NLM Pairs (0–500)

2:15 Single–Session Stratified Open Pairs

(A: 2,500+ B: 750–2,500 C: 0–750)

Single–Session Stratified NLM Pairs (0–500)

Stratifications may be changed at the discretion of the tournament director.

Sunday, January 8

10:00 Bracketed Swiss Teams

& TBA Pre-Duplicated Hands with Hand Records!

We will have food galore to help everyone enjoy the day. As with our 2022 tournaments, everyone must provide proof of vaccination. Please bring a mask to wear when you are at a table with someone who must wear one.

Come and enjoy the New Year with us all!

IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT

Our Unit will be electing a new Unit Board of Directors at the January 6-8, 2023, tournament at the Bala Golf Club. Here are the details:

Any paid-up member of Unit 141 is eligible to vote. There are eleven positions on the Board. We have fourteen nominees.

Five Incumbent Board Members are running for an additional term:

April Apfelbaum (current Unit Secretary)

Jay Apfelbaum (current Unit President)

Ellen Berkowitz (current Unit Treasurer)

Joan Goldstein

Everett Young

Nine PCBA Members are running to join the Board of Directors:

Mark Cohen

John Dickenson

Becky Levinson

Robbie Perlman

Estelle Ronderos

Andy Rosenberg

Pam Scalamandre

Cathy Strauss

Mark Teseny

All eleven positions will be filled. The eleven nominees with the most votes will be elected. Being an incumbent or officer carries no certainty of being elected to another term of office. Voting will be in-person at the Bala Golf Club during the January 6-8, 2023, Sectional Tournament. Voting will end at 10:00 a.m. on Sunday, January 8, 2023.

Each voter will mark anywhere from one to eleven names on their ballot, then print their name, ACBL number and the number of people for whom they are voting. Their vote will be complete when it is given to an election manager. Voting will end at 10:00 a.m. on Sunday. The election managers will tabulate the votes as quickly as is reasonable. The four nominees with the most votes will each get a three-year term. The four nominees with the next most votes will each get a two-year term. The three successful nominees with the fewest votes will each get a one-year term. Ties (including for last place) will be broken by drawing cards with the high card winning.

With luck, the eleven successful nominees will be announced before the end of the day. The elected nominees in attendance on Sunday will meet after the game and elect officers for 2023. The officers to be elected are President, Vice-President, Secretary and Treasurer.

See you at the polls!!

A big welcome to our newest PCBA members!

Nadine A Alexander

Jack Carballo

Dan Carney

Lamis Fleischer

Cindy K Harris

Susanne Lennon

Maribeth P Lerner

Alejo Rincon

Jay Rose

Susan Sams

Melanie Smith

Congratulations to our members who achieved a new rank!

*** New Junior Masters ***

Paul S Baron

Deborah A Freisheim

Lisa Lipson

Ruthie D Strong

Richard D Temple

*** New Club Masters ***

Susan J Shaffer

William Tannery

*** New Sectional Master ***

Sara Sheiman

*** New Regional Masters ***

Marie-Louise Ingersoll

Walt J Woerheide

*** New Bronze Life Master ***

Marianne D McClennen

*** New Silver Life Masters ***

Norma Daley

Merle Rosenfeld

*** New Ruby Life Master ***

Sandra Kayson

*** New Gold Life Master ***

Stephen G Emerson

Link to the unit website

Unit 168: Central Pennsylvania

Russell Poppleton

rpoppleton@comcast.net

I bought a new couch and the salesman told me it would comfortably seat five people with no problems. After I got it home, I realized it was too big. I don't know five people with no problems.

Congratulations to the following for progressing up the ACBL ladder:

JUNIOR MASTERS

Robert E, Deitzel

Constance Kuntz

Catherine Marenghi

CLUB MASTERS

Franklin Clarke

Jennifer Clarke

Edward Ledwith

Freda Yocum

NABC MASTER

Dr Carole Campbell

ADVANCED NABC MASTER

Bobbie Goodyear

GOLD LIFE MASTER

Ricky Boyer

South Central PA continues to host virtual games. See the website bridgeboardroom.com for a complete virtual schedule. Games are held on a daily basis. Junior Fund week is Jan 9-15 with double black points during that timeframe. Please note: The online schedule was updated Dec 26.

Also, at the Bridge Board room website is information about two (2) bridge cruises in 2023 and seven (7) bridge boot camps. All of these events are packed with bridge and good times.

District 4 Flight B (0-2500 masterpoints) Grand National Teams will be held online Feb 4-5. Preregistration is required by Jan 30. Get your team together, sign up and compete for gold points and a chance to win a stipend to Nationals. Other Flights will compete in March, also online.

The Harrisburg Bridge Club (HBC) will be hosting its monthly Swiss Team game on Wednesday, Jan 25. Both a 0-750 and an open game are scheduled. Game time is at 6:30 P.M. with food available at 5:45. Advance registration is requested to plan for sufficient food. See the HBC website, www.bridgewebs.com/harrisburg/ for full details and COVID protocols.

Point to ponder

A recent 2/1 auction in the ACBL Bridge Bulletin goes like this against silent opponents: 1S- 2D - 3H. Six (6) of fourteen (14) panelists say 3H is a splinter in support of diamonds. There is room for other interpretations. Make sure you and your partner are in agreement.

How about this for a New Year's resolution: Get in touch with someone who has been away from the bridge table for awhile. Ask them to play F2F or virtually, and get them interested in bridge again.